The Useless Tree

Religion

  • That Theodicy Thing

                  A good review in the New Yorker this week by James Wood, surveying the problem of theodicy – i.e. how is it that human suffering and evil can be countenanced by an omnipotent, omniscient and benevolent God?  Wood… Continue reading

  • Zizek on China

       When Slavoj Zizek writes an op-ed in the NYT titled, "How China Got Religion," how could I not respond?    I have no trouble with most of it.  He does the usual post-modern reversal thing by pointing out how… Continue reading

  • Chinese Solutions to the Religion Problem

         Mark Lilla’s article in last Sunday’s NYT Magazine has been circling through my mind all week.  While he does a great job explicating the ways in which modernization does not fully eradicate our tendency toward religion, which he… Continue reading

  • Is Tao Like Logos?

         There is an article in the most recent Atlantic Monthly on the Catholic Church in China.  The piece centers on Bishop Jin Liuxian of Shanghai and the trials and tribulations he experienced in his long struggle to preserve… Continue reading

  • Tao Mitzvah

         We went to another Bat Mitzvah today, for a classmate in my daughter’s seventh grade.  As a part of the ceremony we recited this poem/prayer: Nature is God’s niggun,a wordless melody of unfolding life.To awaken God we must… Continue reading

  • Flexible Ritual – Where’s Elijah?

         One of the key concepts of Confucianism is Ritual – Li.  The term has a somewhat negative connotation in contemporary English, suggesting something dryly formal, done without feeling or commitment, just going through the motions.  This is not,… Continue reading

  • Jewish, Chinese, American

         One of my fascinations, in studying ancient Chinese philosophy and its application to modern American life, is how the meaning of "Chinese-ness" changes over time and in different locations.  My interest was piqued, therefore, when I spotted this… Continue reading

  • Religious Taoism

        I was away in New York City Yesterday, going to see Broadway shows there with my daughter (more on that later); so, I am a bit behind in the news.  Imagine my delight when I discovered this article… Continue reading

  • Bat Mitzvah

        My blog silence of the last couple of days (I missed Friday!) was due to a brief family excursion to the Boston area to attend the Bat Mitzvah of a friend’s daughter.  It was a marvelous ceremony with… Continue reading

  • Why No Chinese Terrorists?

         Chan Akya has a notable piece in today’s Asia Times, "Islam and the absence of Chinese terrorists."  Akya makes a culturalist argument, suggesting that deep historical forces, manifest in various elements of traditional Chinese culture, especially including Buddhism,… Continue reading